How Ring Lights Can Help Light Up Content Creation Process -

Video is one of the most powerful mediums of communication. Whether you’re a brand or an independent filmmaker or creator, video production done right is a game-changer. Even if your camera-work, camera direction, sound, and script are high quality, bad lighting can make or break your video content.

Full-fledged studio lighting equipment can be pricey to even rent let alone purchase. Plus, if you’re short on space, it’s probably not the best idea to cram big studio lights in the room.

Enter ring lights.

Ring Lights 101: Things You Need to Know

A ring light is exactly how it sounds, it’s an LED light in the shape of a ring. Ring lights are all the rage right now because they make excellent lighting for visual communication. They can be fitted on a camera lens or in the case of bigger ring lights, cameras can shoot through them. And since you have your source of lighting up close, you’re not going to get many shadows, evening out your photos and videos.

On top of this, since the light is typically very bright, it evens out your skin, reducing the appearance of any blemishes. Plus, it makes your eyes look brighter, pulling focus onto your face for photos and videos. By illuminating the subject, they automatically transform a plain-looking video into a high-quality, more dimensional one. Therefore, ring lights are especially excellent for close-up shots.

Why Ring Lights Are Popular Among Creators?

Nearly every photo or video creator or influencer right now uses a ring light. This is because the bright, even lighting has the ability to transform amateur video content into something that looks more high quality, well-produced, and professional.

Ring lights are the best way for small creators to make their content look more appealing. Plus, there’s no learning curve with a ring or selfie light, unlike professional lighting equipment; you simply point it at the subject and start!

Here are some things you can use a ring light for:

• Macro Photography
• Video content
• Selfies
• Portraits
• Close-up photos
  
  

Now, if you’re a creator or aspiring influencer, you’re probably going “sounds neat, where do I sign up?”. Before you run to your nearest electronics store or hop online for one, there are some things you should consider.

Things to Consider Before Buying a Ring Light

1.     Size

Ring lights come in many sizes, varying between 8 inches going up to 20 inches. Since ring lights are a collection of LED bulbs arranged in a ring, bigger lights have more bulbs and vice versa. With bigger lights, you also get a larger diameter of a ring, which distributes light across a larger frame. 

Smaller ring lights, ranging between 8 to 10 inches, are called selfie lights. They’re not too big but are big enough to perfectly illuminate your face and facial features. Since smaller ring lights have smaller diameters, the light is bright but concentrated in the center.

Also, smaller ring lights come up clips so you can attach them to your phone. This allows you to walk around as you vlog, shoot videos, or take selfies in different locations.

Medium-sized ring lights, typically 10-12 inches, work best for shooting close-up videos in smaller rooms as well as photos and selfies. If you create tutorials such as makeup tutorials, medium-sized ring lights are perfect for you!

Large ring lights, ranging between 18 to 20 inches, work well for larger shots in bigger locations. They take up more space and you’ll probably feel a bit hot while shooting in front of one.

2.     CRI and Temperature

CRI or Color Rendering Index refers to how well your ring light renders the actual colors of the backdrop and subjects. Ideally, a ring light’s CRI should be 95 or above, making the colors of your content brighter and more vibrant. Low-quality ring lights with low CRIs make videos and photos look one-dimensional and washed out.

Moreover, high color temperature in your light helps bring out the colors in your shot. Any temperature above 5500 Kelvin will suffice in getting the most out of your ring light’s abilities.

3.     Controls

Of course, user-friendliness is essential. This is why ring lights are so appealing because they’re easier to use than professional equipment. So a hard-to-use ring light beats the point unless its features make up for it.

If you can, make sure you test the ring light out before purchasing it. See the versatility of settings, and the control options you get. More options don’t necessarily mean it’s an excellent product. However, some adjustability gives you a more versatile product that works for a variety of shots and content.

For example, you can change the colors of the bulbs inside your ring light, giving you more options with the lighting of your content.

4.     Power

While smaller ring lights are battery operated or rechargeable, bigger ring lights require AC power or battery packs since they power more bulbs. If you’re getting a smaller ring light, long battery life is essential so you can shoot longer videos without any hiccups.

If you plan on creating vlogs or tend to move around while shooting your video content, look for a ring light with built-in rechargeable batteries. This is because, typically, ring lights are USB powered, which means you’ll have to stay near an outlet for your shoots.

Our Top Pick for Ring Light

Auxiwa is a selfie-lighting company that creates a variety of lights and ring lights. Our top pick for one of the best ring lights we’ve tried out is the Auxiwa QIAYA selfie light.

Auxiwa’s patented light technology allows their lights to be exceptionally powerful in illuminating the subject without that harsh glare we all despise!

Here are some of this product’s best features that had us sold.

• CRI of over 90
• 128 LED bulbs
• Dimmable/Adjustable LEDs
• Adjustable color temperature ranging from 3500 Kelvin and going up to 6000 Kelvin! This feature is perfect for replicating the look of natural daylight, which we love for shooting video content. Just to put things in perspective, regular daylight is approximately 5500 Kelvin!
• Adjustable ring head: you can rotate the ring head about 270 degrees.
• Phone holder; It comes with a phone holder, so you’re covered even if you don’t have a tripod. Bonus; the phone holder rotates 360 degrees!
• Adjustable tripod height; this means we could shoot our content sitting down or standing up without having to move the cameras and phones.
• Two power options; it comes with a USB port and adapter, so you can plug it in whatever outlet is available near you.
• Remote control: it comes with a Bluetooth pairable remote control; we didn’t have to get up once while shooting a really long video; we could adjust the light right from where we were.
• This is the best part; it’s easy to use. We didn’t have to spend more than 5 minutes figuring the whole thing out. The controls and settings are pretty straightforward, making this product all the more appealing.

Key Takeaway

How Ring Lights Can Help Light Up Content Creation Process

Ring Lights are the secret to creating professional, high-quality videos without professional equipment. If you’re an aspiring influencer, video creator, or photographer, ring lights are an excellent investment that will help you get the most out of your content creation.

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